Quotes of the day

posted at 10:52 pm on September 27, 2012 by Allahpundit

Justice Department documents released today by the ACLU reveal that federal law enforcement agencies are increasingly monitoring Americans’ electronic communications, and doing so without warrants, sufficient oversight, or meaningful accountability.

The documents, handed over by the government only after months of litigation, are the attorney general’s 2010 and 2011 reports on the use of “pen register” and “trap and trace” surveillance powers. The reports show a dramatic increase in the use of these surveillance tools, which are used to gather information about telephone, email, and other Internet communications. The revelations underscore the importance of regulating and overseeing the government’s surveillance power…

For the government, the usual goal of a pen/trap tap is to identify who you are communicating with and when. In particular, individuals can often be identified based on the IP address assigned to their computer. IP addresses are generally allotted in batches, semi-permanently, to institutions such as universities, Internet service providers (ISPs), and businesses. Depending how the institution distributes its IP address allotment, it may be more or less difficult to link specific computers, and users, to certain IP addresses. It is often surprisingly easy. ISPs often keep detailed logs about IP address allotment, and as we’ll discuss later, those logs are easy for the government to get using a subpoena. Similarly, if the government is collecting email addresses with a pen/trap, it’s easy for them to go to the email provider and subpoena the identity of the person who registered that address.

Another purpose of pen/trap taps is to access information about your cell phone’s location in real-time. When your handset is powered on, it connects to nearby cell towers to signal its proximity, so that the towers can rapidly route a call when it comes through. Law enforcement can use pen/trap devices to monitor these connections, or “pings”, to pinpoint the physical location of the handset, sometimes within a few meters. And although Congress has made clear that pen/trap orders alone cannot be used to authorize this sort of location surveillance, it hasn’t yet clarified what type of court order would suffice. So, although many courts have chosen to require warrants for location tracking, others have not, and the government has routinely been able to get court authorization for such tracking without probable cause.

Consider that last year mobile carriers responded to a staggering 1.3 million law enforcement requests — which come from federal, state and local police, as well as from administrative offices – for subscriber information, including text messages and phone location data. That’s according to data provided to Congress that was released in July.

The nation’s major phone providers said they were working around the clock and charging millions in fees to keep up with ever-growing demands…

All of this only concerns disclosed monitoring. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, in ongoing litigation, claims the National Security Agency, with the help of the nation’s telecoms, is hijacking all electronic communications.

***

More troubling still, says Crump, is just how hard the surveillance data was for the ACLU to obtain. Despite requirements that the warrantless surveillance orders be reported to Congress annually, Congress hasn’t bothered to publish the data for the last two years. The ACLU instead was forced to file Freedom of Information Act requests for the data and then sue the Department of Justice in May to force it to comply.

Even the documents the ACLU has succeeded in publishing, Crump points out, only cover the Department of Justice. That means surveillance orders by the Secret Service, the Department of Homeland Security, and every state and local police force aren’t included. In reports of wiretaps, those state-by-state orders often outnumber the federal surveillance cases.

***

Gee, and all this time I thought Democrats hated wiretaps and warrantless surveillance.

***

Among these likely libertarian voters, the presidential horserace currently stands:

Blowback

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If they did not already tell you, I am one of those evil not yet willing to pull the lever for Romney guys… Feel free to deride me and call me names. It will give you massive amounts of instant acceptance amongst the others :)

If on the other hand, you want to explain your feeling about him being more conservative than he lets on, I would welcome a conversation.

astonerii on September 28, 2012 at 12:52 AM

Okay! I will play for a moment. I have not seen anyone here think remotely that Romney is a conservative. Just that he will be better than the chaos that Obama and a second term will inflict. Sometimes having the chance to fight another day is all one can ask for.

All anyone can really do is ask you to do is honestly weigh the options, look at the candidates, the possible outcomes of each and do what will be best for you, yours and the country. A lot of people here have chosen Romney. Some willingly, some extremely grudgingly and a lot in between.

It is frustrating to know with certainty (yes, I can say that word as all one needs to do is pay attention) the devastation Obama x2 will do. Romney, at worst, will be more status quo nonsense. It is not a hard decision and with the added extra bonus that Romney may actually do something good.

He cannot do worse and here we are. I have said this to you a couple of times and so have others. I am not entirely sure why you negate or ignore what I say here in order to rile up people and upset them. The thought of Obama again worries them immensely. I myself cannot recall being worried about the pending election of Gore or Kerry, to name a few recent, as while they are idiots, they are not what Obama is – someone who by all accounts hates the country.

I can only surmise that you ignore what I and others have said to you, like I said above and is a repeat of what I have said to you previously, in order to troll and upset people.

This has been long-winded, but I wanted to be explicitly clear and ask you: Am I right – that you are willfully ignoring the above and trolling.

BTW — speaking of the ABRs — I hope everyone realizes that if it wasn’t for Romney making that statement about the Cairo embassy’s statement on 9/11 & the press conference the next day, plus his continuing to talk about it in interviews/on the stump despite the initial meme of “Romney’s timing gaffe,” the MSM would have totally covered up the entire thing with the “video” lie Obama pushed that first day and we wouldn’t have the whole Benghazi-gate story blowing up now.

Just want to point that out.

Dark Star on September 28, 2012 at 1:26 AM

No clue what your point is.

No ABR thinks Mitt is a moron.

A broken analogue clock is right twice a day.

Mitt should have shut down the press the second time they asked him the same question about timing. He let them do this to him seven times. He never stands up for himself. Just lets the press beat him to a pulp. Just like we were afraid of that he would be as weak as McCain and he is.

Odumbo is the only politician in the modern era to try (and largely succeed) in “rule by executive order.” (It might have something to do with the fear of being called a racist if you check the “black man” on anything. I’m angry that his administration hasn’t been hauled into the SCOTUS for unconstitutional actions.)

Romney was governor of Massachusetts, one of the “bluest” states in history. From what I’ve read of their healthcare law, he did not support a lot of it.

Still, a governor, Representative, Senator, etc. represents the people that make up his/her constituency. They must try to do what the people who elected them want, no matter how stupid.

Look at Odumbocare: Pugnosi said they had to pass it so we could find out what was in it; and, they did pass it–in back chambers of Congress, under cover of darkness. No one wanted this mess; it will only help to bankrupt us quicker.

Still, even Odumbo could not have gotten that fiasco done by himself–by diktat.

So, the question is what did you expect Romney to do as MA Governor? Turn it into Utah? (I might agree if you said he should have vetoed their healthcare reform, but would he have accomplished anything that he wanted to get done after that?)

Romney (please Lord, let him win) will govern the US more conservatively than he governed MA–no doubt in my mind.

Another question is how do we overturn Odumbocare without control of the Senate?

(I have no idea which Senators are up in 2014 or 2016 or how safe their seats are, so I can’t really say if enough pressure could be brought on the democrats to vote for a repeal. Most likely, they keep control of the Senate and a55wipe Harry blocks any votes he might lose.)

This has been long-winded, but I wanted to be explicitly clear and ask you: Am I right – that you are willfully ignoring the above and trolling.

kim roy on September 28, 2012 at 2:25 AM

I am not trolling here. The only people I work into being upset are those who have nothing more than attacks to offer, I would prefere adult conversations and they make the site unfriendly for anyone outside of their own personal viewpoint. I have been a very long standing member of Hot Air. Maybe 6 months after Michelle started the site.
I’m a bit tired, My Wife just landed and needed my help to get to the hotel. I think she dialed too many digits…

I read your post, but am not really able to digest it. I will once i get more than two hours sleep.

Romney (please Lord, let him win) will govern the US more conservatively than he governed MA–no doubt in my mind.

RedCrow on September 28, 2012 at 2:49 AM

No clue why you would think that.

Romney lived in Utah for the 2002 Olympics he owned a home and paid resident land and income taxes in Utah for two years.

He thought about running in Utah but he was far to liberal to have any chance.

He endorsed the Democrat for Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky something.

He moved back to Mass but owned no home there so used his son’s address of an investment property. Talked the winner of the Republican Primary to drop out and let Mitt take his place. He gave him max campaign contributions state Senate to do so. He refiled as a non Utah resident and Mass resident his taxes to beat a challenge to his eligibility to run.

Ed Rendell just the other day praised Romney for how well he worked with the Democrats to get his Mass Care plan through the Senate. Praised the original plan Mitt came up with. Mitt has never pointed to any conservative accomplishment. Just meaningless vetoes that were overridden in a plan to make him falsely appear conservative. That fell apart when it was proven he signed into law any that failed to get the votes to override him.

Ed Rendell just the other day praised Romney for how well he worked with the Democrats to get his Mass Care plan through the Senate.

Steveangell on September 28, 2012 at 3:37 AM

Lol. Please. In case you hadn’t heard, that is the tactic of your side in this election. Odumbocare continues to be thoroughly unpopular–no matter how many taxpayer dollars your side wastes trying to promote it–so Odumbo (and various cronies) try to say that Romney was its “architect.”

It wasn’t Romney’s law that was passed in MA, it was the democrat legislature’s.

2.) The economy is “recovering”. No mention of latest “revised” GDP numbers because we’re busy talking about Mitt Romney losing. It’s ovah! Oh, and some idiot on one the business networks says the latest numbers are bad. No one cares because we have a Mitt Romney campaign to talk about here.

3.) Obama will lose the debate for now, but afterwards, HE WON THE 1ST DEBATE! It’s ovah! It’s all ovah!

Meanwhile, media utterly ignores fact that Obama and the wife soaked the taxpayers for over six trillion-with-a-T dollars and over a billion more in just one year for their ‘fun in and from the White House’.

Yes, the media thinks folks are sitting around, poorer, with their unemployed college-graduate kids, saying “Gee, that Obama sure is ordinary. I’ll give him another four years to really, really f-k up my life some more. Forward!”

It’s just frustrating watching people who are “adults” sit on television, pampered, telling us something that is outside of reality.

The American people are being crushed under this president’s mismanagement — some are dying if we’re talking overseas — and the media wants to talk about… campaign process.

cmsinaz on September 28, 2012 at 6:53 AM
Yep. As I wrote, The cut the Defense Budget, and they allow Huma Abedin (Mrs. Anthony Weiner) Hil’s Assistant and confidante, who’s mother and father have ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, complete access to all of our Foreign Policy Information.

Janet “Barbecue” Reno gladly provided close to a thousand or more FBI files to Boss Clintoon so it would be no surprise that Reno’s First Stooge sleazy Eric Holder would gladly do the same for Barky Hussein.

So, you’re my appointed communications spy huh? Sorry to be so dang boring, I’ll try to spice them up a bit.

Flora Duh on September 28, 2012 at 7:06 AM

Several months back it was IIRC annoyinglittletwerp who wondered if somebody was watching her office… and I said “your plants in the window need watering.” Also several months ago Cindy M. mentioned all the house work she was doing so, naturally, I mentioned how lovely she looked vacuuming the carpets nekkid. Or something madcap like that…

All in good fun, of course, not like JackieB flaming broiling on the bacon threads.

TSA and this whole electronic war on Americans is the legacy of GEORGE W BUSH.

He also was pretty good at not letting a crisis go to waste.

Instead of making Muslims and their sympathizers be checked at Airports and letting everyone else through the TSA forces Grannies with freaking hand sanitizer to go through the naked scanner or get felt up.

Next time you go thru the security say out loud………thank you George Bush.

And BTW stripping Granny didn’t result in catching the shoe bomber or anyone else after 9/11.

…start out the morning right with you two almost all the time…gotta run to work and catch up then…if spokesfish shows up…tell it to shad-up for me…and tell it to start ^ HUMPING the camel!…it’ll know what to do!

Yes, the media thinks folks are sitting around, poorer, with their unemployed college-graduate kids, saying “Gee, that Obama sure is ordinary. I’ll give him another four years to really, really f-k up my life some more. Forward!”

It’s just frustrating watching people who are “adults” sit on television, pampered, telling us something that is outside of reality.

The American people are being crushed under this president’s mismanagement — some are dying if we’re talking overseas — and the media wants to talk about… campaign process.

It’s maddening.

Punchenko on September 28, 2012 at 6:59 AM

Yes, completely agree.

Another thing I read just yesterday was that Obama campaign has spent far more on ads pushing abortion and immigration than they have on THE ECONOMY and Medicare.

It’s easy to see just what they’re up to, working the public to deflect attention off important (the economy, jobs) and critical issues as to voting and onto those emotionally agitating issues of abortion and immigration.

Too many on the Left and in the Middle are being encouraged to remain hypnotized into “believing” Obama’s actually contributing good things to their lives while the polar opposite of that is reality.

Janet “Barbecue” Reno gladly provided close to a thousand or more FBI files to Boss Clintoon so it would be no surprise that Reno’s First Stooge sleazy Eric Holder would gladly do the same for Barky Hussein.

viking01 on September 28, 2012 at 7:07 AM

A personal anecdote somewhat related.

I have a sister who walked away from the family 40+ years ago after an argument with my mother. About 15 yrs ago another sister hired a private detective to try to find her.

Unfortunately he was unable to give us any information where the missing sister is, but he did inform us that the FBI had a file on my parents, myself, and all 11 of my brothers and sisters.

None of us have ever been any trouble with the law, other than a couple of my brothers being arrested for a bar fight. Certainly nothing that would warrant the FBI being involved.

I truly enjoy your Tweets. Thank you for working so hard to get the truth out.

kingsjester on September 28, 2012 at 7:11 AM

Thank you. Other than making phone calls and sitting in a lawn chair on a street corner holding signs, social media is the only contribution I can make.

What Mitt needs to be working on for the debate are very tough lines of attack, but he needs to be prepared to do it in such a way that he comes across as dignified and reasonable. I hope his people are working on humorous, memorable lines to be used as attacks and as comebacks.

Mitt CANNOT and MUST NOT do the blustery, Newt-style, attack the moderator and make a dramatic spectacle type of thing. That kind of thing is better suited to the primary debates, and even then Newt didn’t always hit his mark. You people screaming for him to “go off” on Obama at the debates don’t know what you’re talking about. Mitt needs to walk a fine line here, and if anyone can do it he can. You guys need only to rewatch the FL debate where he went after Newt to see how Mitt is able to turn up the toughness volume without overdoing it.

Mitt is going to be questioned in an accusatory way by the witches at the moderator table about the “47%” comments and about his comments about the Cairo Embassy tweets, but he shouldn’t back down even an inch when answering. HE can’t show weakness. What he should do is be prepared to restate his points in ways that more people can understand. Look, Mitt has the truth on his side, and I believe a majority of voters’ will agree with Mitt’s positions in both those examples.

Mitt also needs to be better prepared to respond to questions of media bias. Maybe he should even try to find a way to mention the topic here and there. To loudly denounce the PAINFULLY OBVIOUS and apparent pro-Obama media bias would come across like whining and would hurt him more than help. Romney/Ryan need to find a way to acknowledge the media bias without sounding like they are complaining. Maybe they could take a tact similar to the following: “We know that Barack Obama has many friends in the news media, and that’s fine. We respect and appreciate the important work of the news media and acknowledge the role they play in our democracy, but it will be voters across the country – the people- who will decide the election, not television news analysts.” Yes, Mitt and Paul Ryan need to engage in some passive aggressive tactics.

Another line of attack that Romney/Ryan should employ is to allude to the fact that Obama is still today viewed as a celebrity and as “cool” more than as particularly knowledgeable about the economy. This kind of attack has the potential to be potent. Mitt needs to let Obama be known as the “cool” one. This area would give Mitt some excellent opportunities for memorable lines that draw clear distinctions between he and Obama: One would be a competent though “hopelessly uncool” serious leader who will never apologize for the country and will actually deliver the results voters expect. The other a man who can promise a lot in speeches, entertain an audience like a movie star, but who nonetheless can offer nothing but excuses and blame for the failure of his policies.

Mitt needs to say that he had hoped Obama would succeed, but that the undeniable fact is that Obama’s policies have failed across the board. I think Mitt should acknowledge that many voters still hold an emotional attachment to their 2008 Obama vote, and he needs to find some way to convey the idea that people shouldn’t feel sorry for Obama. Yes, as weird as it sounds to us, I think many persuadable voters feel bad for Obama; they think he’s trying his best even if the results are terrible. Mitt needs to make it clear that the people who deserve better are all those people who can’t find jobs and that Obama will be just fine.

Mitt’s style and the overall impression he gives will be just as important as the substance of his answers.

it is interesting IRT polls … my wife who is very non political …. votes every election … but doesn’t really get spun up …. is so mad about the polling
+12 Dem in order to the Iwon up by 3 … her and most if not all her teacher friends (Christian school) are just that much more determined to vote …
it is not depressing them … it is pissing them off …. keep it up folks …
let the press keep saying it is over … no need to vote … your just pissing folks off and they are more determined to vote….

I haven’t read either of Barky’s / Ayer’s books. I’m trying to remember (and properly credit) which writer Jonah Goldberg, Jim Treacher or whomever it was that gave the Obama doggie dinner story legs paws back when Oblamer’s minions were going over the top and hit the roof with the car carrier diversion.

This just in Hotair. The people who read your blog already despise the Skinny Grinner. Showing his Frank Davis age spotted ugly ass mug is turning us away at this point. Give us something decent to look at. Everytime the urge to put that rotten b#stards face on your page, substitute with an NFL Cheerleader or some hot dude/dudette.

The president has no direct impact on the program, and one could hardly call these devices “Obama Phones,” as the e-mail author does. This specific program, SafeLink, started under President George Bush, with grants from an independent company created under President Bill Clinton, which was a legacy of an act passed under President Franklin Roosevelt, which was influenced by an agreement reached between telecommunications companies and the administration of President Woodrow Wilson.

I’ve known of several lower income elderly women who have had SafeLink “free phones” for a couple of years.